Forlorn hope

A forlorn hope is a band of soldiers or other combatants chosen to take the leading part in a military operation, such as an assault on a defended position, where the risk of casualties is high.

Etymology

The term comes from the Dutch verloren hoop, literally "lost troop". The Dutch word "hoop" can mean "hope" but is in this context etymologically equivalent to the English word "heap". The term was used in military contexts to denote a troop formation. The Dutch word hoop (in its sense of heap in English) is not cognate with English hope: this is an example of false folk etymology. The mistranslation of "verloren hoop" as "forlorn hope" is "a quaint misunderstanding" using the nearest-sounding English words. This false etymology is further entrenched by the fact that in Dutch the word hoop is a homograph meaning "hope" as well as "heap", though the two senses have different etymologies.

History

In the days of muzzle-loading muskets, the term was most frequently used to refer to the first wave of soldiers attacking a breach in defences during a siege. It was likely that most members of the forlorn hope would be killed or wounded. The intention was that some would survive long enough to seize a foothold that could be reinforced, or at least that a second wave with better prospects could be sent in while the defenders were reloading or engaged in mopping up the remnants of the first wave. British troops of the forlorn hope at the 1812 Siege of Badajoz carried a large (5–6 feet (1.5–1.8 m) by 2 feet (0.61 m) in diameter) bag stuffed with hay or straw, which was thrown down into the enemy trenches to create a cushion and prevent injury as they jumped down.

Boom Beach

Boom Beach is a freemium mobile strategy video game for iOS and Android, developed by Supercell. It was soft launched in Canada on 11 November 2013 and widely released on 26 March 2014.

Gameplay

Boom Beach is a strategy game that combines attacks on other players with attacks against computer generated bases and organizations (Blackguard). The game's storyline is set in a tropical archipelago with the player on an island with defenses and troops (similar to Supercell's Clash of Clans game).

Players can build their base, upgrading their defenses and other buildings, and unlock troop upgrades. Boom Beach combines single player campaign play as well as the ability to attack other players in multiplayer mode on the same map. It has been a top 10 game in 22 countries at its launch. The game pits the player against an enemy known as "The Blackguard" which is often represented by Lt. Hammerman.

Apart from the main aspect of the game, there is also a cooperative form where players gather "Intel" (by surviving or ordering attacks, or by rewards) which is then used to attack computer generated bases in task force operations.

Green Court

Green Court is a hamlet in central Alberta, Canada within Lac Ste. Anne County. It is located at the intersection of Highway 43 and Highway 18, approximately 127 kilometres (79 mi) northwest of Edmonton.

See also

References

Coordinates: 54°00′28″N 115°14′19″W / 54.00778°N 115.23861°W / 54.00778; -115.23861 (Green Court)

Hope

Hope is an optimistic attitude of mind based on an expectation of positive outcomes related to events and circumstances in one's life or the world at large. As a verb, its definitions include: "expect with confidence" and "to cherish a desire with anticipation".

Among its opposites are dejection, hopelessness and despair.

In psychology

Dr. Barbara L. Fredrickson argues that hope comes into its own when crisis looms, opening us to new creative possibilities. Frederickson argues that with great need comes an unusually wide range of ideas, as well as such positive emotions as happiness and joy, courage, and empowerment, drawn from four different areas of one’s self: from a cognitive, psychological, social, or physical perspective. Hopeful people are "like the little engine that could, [because] they keep telling themselves "I think I can, I think I can". Such positive thinking bears fruit when based on a realistic sense of optimism, not on a naive "false hope".

The psychologist C.R. Snyder linked hope to the existence of a goal, combined with a determined plan for reaching that goal:Alfred Adler had similarly argued for the centrality of goal-seeking in human psychology, as too had philosophical anthropologists like Ernst Bloch. Snyder also stressed the link between hope and mental willpower, as well as the need for realistic perception of goals, arguing that the difference between hope and optimism was that the former included practical pathways to an improved future.D. W. Winnicott saw a child's antisocial behaviour as expressing an unconscious hope for management by the wider society, when containment within the immediate family had failed.Object relations theory similarly sees the analytic transference as motivated in part by an unconscious hope that past conflicts and traumas can be dealt with anew.